Podcast Episodes
Back to Search121. The Fall of the Shah of Shahs
Season 5 Episode 21
The Shah cracks down on dissent, to the point even his great ally Jimmy Carter begins to cool on the relationship. The economy continues to overheat …
1 year, 11 months ago
120. The Iranian Revolution: The Rise of Ayatollah Khomeini
Season 5 Episode 20
With the Last Shah’s reforms - known as the White Revolution - starting to take effect, Iran looked to be in a healthy position. Economic growth is s…
1 year, 11 months ago
119. The Last Shah
Season 5 Episode 19
Reza Pahlavi rules but he is still bedevilled by the interference of the great powers. Britain has its claws in deep with the Anglo-Iranian Oil Compa…
1 year, 11 months ago
118. Iran's First Revolution
Season 5 Episode 18
Throughout the 19th century, Iran was a pawn of the great colonial powers. It failed to industrialise, its economy stagnated, and resentment at forei…
1 year, 11 months ago
117. Nader Shah: The Sword of Persia
Season 5 Episode 17
Nader Shah was not born to rule. He was poor, the son of a shepherd in a semi-nomadic tribe, and had no connection to the throne. But he was physical…
1 year, 11 months ago
116. Isfahan: The City of Dreams
Season 5 Episode 16
Isfahan, half of the world. It had been a city for years, but at the end of the 16th century Shah Abbas made it his capital and totally transformed i…
1 year, 11 months ago
115. The Great Conversion: How Iran became Shia
Season 5 Episode 15
How did the great divide within Islam, the split between Sunni and Shia, develop? We trace how the great 16th century confrontation between the Ottom…
2 years ago
114. The Persian Renaissance
Season 5 Episode 14
After conquering much of Eurasia, Timur showed no interest in building institutions and so after his death, like the Mongol Empire before it, the Tim…
2 years ago
113. Timur: Scourge of God
Season 5 Episode 13
Timur, known to many as Tamburlaine the Great from the iconic Marlowe play. Despite having a limp and struggling to get onto a horse, he erupted from…
2 years ago
112. Ferdowsi: How One Poet Saved Persian Civilisation
Season 5 Episode 12
After the Arab conquest, Persia was turned upside down. Patronage went to Islam as opposed to Zoroastrianism. The official language of state was now …
2 years ago